The Shogukane
by DRbachatera
Summary: The Rookie 9 are on a new mission to retrieve a group of unknown ninja. On this journey they will find out secrets about themselves and others this is especially true for both Naruto and Hinata.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of the characters in the story line; however, the original characters in this fic are mine.

A/N: This story is set after the show ended, but Sasuke still hasn't been found, so in the beginning that is the main goal of the Rookie 9. You'll find out later on why he hasn't been found.

The Shogukane

During lunchtime, Naruto and Sakura were thinking up a new way in which to find their fallen comrade, Sasuke.

"Well, I was thinking we could use some other type of chi or scent seeker. Unless you want to stink up that plan again Naruto!" said Sakura.

"Sakura are you still mad about that? I said it was an accident," said the aforementioned Naruto.

"Well as a matter of fact I am! You passed up our only chance to find Sasuke! And now we're stuck here trying to think up a new plan to look for him again!"

"I said I was sorry!" Naruto yelled.

At that same moment, Naruto felt something fall on his head. He looks up to see a flying squirrel coming straight for him. The squirrel landed on top of Naruto's head. It then started moving around his head as if it was looking for something. Naruto was wildly jumping around and yelling at the squirrel to get off of him.

The squirrel finally found that something; an acorn, and got off Naruto. However as it was about to leave it saw Sasuke's headband and decided to use it as a makeshift bag for the other acorns stuffed in its mouth. Naruto and Sakura were really miffed about that.

"Hey give that back you.", both Naruto and Sakura said, but the squirrel just flew away in the direction of the Hokage sanctuary.

"Get back here!" Naruto yelled

Meanwhile, there was a meeting between the 5 Hokage, the Jounin, and the clans of Konoha. They too were discussing the topic of finding Sasuke; but for different reasons.

"The boy must be punished for his betrayal to this village." Exclaimed one clan leader.

"Agreed," said many others.

"Gentlemen please," the 5 Hokage said, "We should first focus on finding Uchiha Sasuke."

At that exact moment, Naruto barged into the office holding the unnamed squirrel.

"Now I've got you. Give back Sasuke's headband now!"

"Naruto, what is the meaning of this?" cried out Kakashi.

However, at the same time, Naruto just noticed where he was and lost his grip on the squirrel. It then flew to the 5 Hokage.

"Hey! See what you made me do Kakashi-sensei.," exclaimed Naruto.

"This is not good," said the Hokage.

"What is it?"

"The Shogukane are coming"

"The what?"

"You don't need to know that now Naruto. Oh and here's Sasuke's band back."

"Gee, thanks Tsunade-sama. But really, who are-"

"Now Naruto, you shouldn't be asking such things now; shouldn't you be off on a mission with the Frog Hermit?" asked Iruka.

"Mission? What mission?"

"Yes, I very much recall him saying he had to make some important observations." Kakashi commented.

"Gah, that's no mission! The old man's just at the bath house peeping at-"

"Do not even dare tarnish the good name of Jaraiya-sunnin.," said one Jounin.

"But-" Naruto tried to protest.

"No buts." Everyone in the room said while giving him the evil eye. They then proceeded to kick him out of the office.

"Stupid Jounin! I was just asking a question!" exclaimed Naruto.

Back in the office…

"The Shogukane… what are they going to do here?"

"They say they're in search of the Fourth One."

"So they believe the Fourth One is in our village? But how, I thought they had already found him." asked Iruka.

"Apparently not. It says here that that was only a front to dissuade their enemies from hunting them."

"Do they have any suspicions of the Fourth One might be?" asked one clan member.

"Yes and no. They know it is someone from the Rookie 9; however, they don't know who it is. They have also asked for the Rookie 9 to come and escort them to the village."

"But why the Rookie 9? The ANBU should go and escort them here.," asked one concerned clansman.

"I know, but they want to get close to the 9; know how they operate in order to discern who the Fourth One is."

"Well yes, but they have yet to become strong enough to protect the Shogukane." Kakashi said.

"I know, but we must fulfill this request in order to find the Fourth One. Assemble the Rookie 9 tomorrow; they will be informed of their mission and carry it out the day after. However, you Jounin will be there to accompany them on their mission." Replied the 5 Hokage.

The Next Day…

"Those are the requirements set in. Each group will be accompanied by their Jounin master and will go through different paths to meet up at the Clearing of the Equals (made up). Understand?"

"Hai"

"Good, tomorrow you will set out and go your directed paths. Make sure nothing happens to our visitors. That will be all for today."

One by one the Rookie 9 filed out of the Assembly Room.

"Do you think you did correct in not telling them who they have to protect Tsunade?"asked Jaraiya, Naruto's new sensei.

"I don't know. We'll just have to wait and see what happens." answered the 5 Hokage.

Meanwhile, the Rookie 9 were in the yard discussing their mission.

"Oh great, now we have to go and protect some snobs from nothing; unlike them, I have better things to do." said Shikamaru.

"Like what? Sit on your butt the whole day?" replied his group mate Ino.

"As a matter of fact, yes, you loud mouthed witch."

"What'd you say!" said Ino suddenly standing a holding up a fist as of to punch Shikamaru.

"Ahem, I suggest we get back to the conversation at hand", said Shino of Group 8.

"Yeah, like what's up with those demands of theirs? We can't wear our headbands, we can't wear the clothes we usually wear, I have to hide our weapons so good that even we don't know where they are, and the list goes on! I mean what's up with these guys!", exclaimed Shino's group mate, Kiba.

"Um… Kiba-kun, I believe those demands are there to protect our identities as ninjas from the enemies of those we have to protect.", replied Hinata the last member of Group 8.

"Well yeah, but our more important here is to find Sasuke. The war with the Sound is over but we still can't find him anywhere!", exclaimed Sakura.

"Yes, that too is a perplexing problem we must find a solution to."

"Well, Tsunade-sama did say the visitors were powerful ninja. Maybe when we bring them to the village we can ask for their help in finding Sasuke.", responded Shikamaru.

"Hey, that's not a bad idea. Since we saved their butts, they owe us big time. Let's do it!", said an overexcited Naruto.

"We haven't even left the village yet you idiot." said Chouji.

However, there was no getting to Naruto since he already had his mind set on Shikamaru's plan. Unfortunately, his stomach had other ideas.

"Hey, anyone want to go out to lunch?", Naruto asked.

Apparently, they were hungry too. Of course, they went to Naruto's favorite ramen shop, Ichiraku ramen. Hinata on the other hand, had to go to the back of the shop to do her job, which was to cook ramen.

"Man, these ramen are awesome! Did you actually cook it Ichiraku?"

"You can thank our cook; Hinata come on out!"

She came out from the back of the restaurant, to suddenly be on the receiving end of a slap on the back from Ichiraku.

"Hinata, this tastes awesome. More ramen please!"

"Y-yes. Do any of you want something else?

"Yeah, more soy sauce and 2 more plates of ramen.", replied Chouji.

Everyone else declined her offer. After Hinata went back to work, both Kiba and Shino were deep in thought.

"Hey, what's wrong you two?", asked Sakura.

"We worry about her, that's all."

"Yeah, after her dad disowned her we offered a whole bunch of times that she could move in with one of us and our family, but she said no. Akamaru even said he'd be good if she came, and she still said no.", replied Kiba.

"Don't worry you guys, Hinata knows what she's doing.", Ino said, trying to comfort them. "I mean she does seem to be happy."

"Seeming and being are two different things, Ino.", said Shikamaru.

"Hmm… Hey Hinata, are you happy!", yelled Naruto as if she could hear him.

"Naruto, what the heck do you think you're doing?", exclaimed Sakura as she jumped on him trying to cover his mouth.

Unfortunately, Hinata walked back in the shop at that moment. "Umm…"

"Huh? Oh Hinata, you're back! I'll just go back to where I was sitting, don't worry I know where it is. Hahaha", Sakura said; laughing awkwardly all the way to her seat.

"Um…w-what did y-you ask m-me, Naruto-kun?"

"Oh, right; Hinata, are you happy?"

"Ugh, just forget about him Hinata. You know he's an idiot.", replied Kiba.

"Shut Up! Hinata, are you or aren't you happy? I need to know." At that moment, Naruto was completely in front of Hinata's face, forgetting all about the unwritten rules of personal space.

"Oh, um, o-of course I'm happy N-naruto-kun. But w-where does th-the question c-come from?"

"Aah, I just wanted to know, but now that I know that you're happy, I'm happy too."

After Naruto said that Hinata got very red in the face and was horribly trying to get back her composure.

"Wow, I'm actually full." Chouji said, instantly dissolving the sort of awkward situation.

"Well, that's a first.", replied Ino.

"Hinata, we must prepare for the upcoming mission. When can you get off work?" asked Shino, completely ignoring Chouji's icebreaker.

"Um… I think at 3 in the afternoon."

"Okay, me, Akamaru, and Shino will pick you up at 3." said Kiba.

"Ino, Chouji; we should go as well and come up with a plan to get through Mist Wood without having to fight other ninja in the area.

"Right."

"Okay, we'll see you later guys, Forehead Girl."

"What'd you say!" exclaimed Sakura. Unfortunately for her, Ino was already beyond hearing distance. Instantly changing moods, she asked Naruto if he was ready to leave yet.

"Nah, I'll meet up with you later Sakura."

"Ugh, do you ever stop eating ramen Naruto?" Sakura asked while on her way out.

"Hey Hinata, can I get 5 more bowls of ramen, please?"

"Sure, Naruto-kun"

While going into the kitchen, Hinata suddenly felt something very powerful eat away at her. She didn't know what it was, but it was giving her a massive headache. She crouched down to the floor trying to suppress the pain.

"Hey Hinata are you okay?"

"I-I-I don't kn-kn-know."

The pain soon became too much for her to handle and she screamed at the top of her lungs, trying to release that pain. Suddenly, all the water in the shop started to surge upward and move wildly all around the shop almost of its own will until Hinata fainted and fell on the floor.

"Hinata!"


	2. It Ends

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto (wish I did, though).

Note: This chapter is the unofficial end to all the boring stuff. In the upcoming chapters, you'll find out more about the Shogukane.

Naruto jumped over the reception desk to squat by Hinata's side desperately trying to get her to wake up.

"Hinata! Hinata! Oh come on, please wake up. Old man! I'm taking Hinata to the hospital."

"Geez, kid, you don't have to scream. Wait, what? Oh, go ahead", he said once he saw Hinata.

Actually, instead of taking her to the hospital, he went looking for either Kiba, or Shino. If he went to the hospital they would want to know what happened, and he definitely couldn't answer that question. Besides, hospitals creeped him out, and they'd probably blame him for what happened anyway.

He found them on the school training grounds running through a simple dual attack. When he came within seeing distance, they ran up to him and the unconscious Hinata with shock and worry written all over their faces.

"What happened to her?" asked both Shino and Kiba.

"I don't know. She was going into the kitchen when all of a sudden I think she got this massive headache and all the water went up and all around before she fainted. I thought maybe one of you could wake her up."

"How about I use my bugs to bring her back into consciousness?"

"Not everything has to be about bugs, you know. And besides, she needs a jolt, like a shock or something. I got it! Akamaru!"

The aforementioned dog trotted over to his ninja partner whereupon he received a whispered command. He then did what he was told, which, unfortunately for Hinata, was to lick her face.

"What? That's it, I could have done that."

"You idiot, Akamaru's saliva has a special chi-jolting effect that'll wake anyone up." (made up), replied an annoyed Kiba.

"Oh. Hey, she's waking up!"

"Hinata!" the three exclaimed together.

"Hinata, are you okay?" asked Naruto.

"The better question is what happened to you Hinata? Why did you faint?" asked Shino.

"I…I don't know. All I remember is that I was about to prepare Naruto-kun's order, when suddenly my head started to hurt and there was this pain I had never felt before in my life. B-But the strangest thing is, I…I don't think that pain was mine."

"What do you mean that pain wasn't yours?"

"I-I don't know Kiba-kun. It just felt like I was feeling someone else's pain and sorrow. I don't think I can explain it better than that."

"Do you think you can go on the mission tomorrow?" asked Shino while helping her get off the ground.

"Y-Yes, don't worry Kiba-kun; it's probably just a one time thing."

"Yeah, well did you forget that you're our group mate? If you need help just ask, okay?" Kiba said.

"Okay." she said faintly blushing at how much her group mates cared for her.

"Thank you Naruto, for bringing Hinata to us."

"It was no problem you guys."

"Thank you Naruto-kun, for helping I…I really appreciate it."

"I said it was no problem; but since you guys insist."

"Hmm… I thought Sakura-chan was with you Naruto." said Shino.

"Oh, she left earlier to go… trai… ning" he said after realizing that he had to go training too and might get a beat down by Sakura. "Aaw, man! I gotta go you guys. See you later!"

A/N: Chapter 3 is where all the action starts and you'll kinda sorta be meeting the villain of the story.


	3. Everyone, Say Hello to Everyone

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

5 days later, we first find ourselves traveling with Group 9.

"Ugh… this fog is annoying! I can't see anything."

"Well Ino, first of all its mist not fog. Second, if there weren't any mist, it wouldn't be called Mist Wood, now would it?" retorted Shikamaru.

"Listen, if you don't want me to wipe out that 200 IQ brain of yours, you'll shut u… gh!" she was about to threaten before she tripped on a tree trunk.

"Ju-" Ino was about to tell Shikamaru to shove it when they heard someone scream… "-Uuuuuppp!"

"Ino, Shikamaru, shut up. You're making too much noise."

"I think we should check it out, I definitely know ninja aren't supposed to make that much noise, it could be those guys we're here for, right?" asked Choji.

"It wouldn't hurt to check it, right Asuma-sensei?" Ino asked.

He contemplated the idea for a second, "Guess not. Come on, let's go." He said as he put out his usual cigarette.

Elsewhere, where the scream came from…

were two people. The first and taller of the two was a man that went only by the name of Shinji. He was somewhere near 6 feet tall, but not exactly. He wasn't the best looking of men, but he was cute in his own way. His brown/black hair was unkempt and wild, just like Naruto's but much shorter. Shinji's left ear was completely covered with silver beaded earrings. Shinji was wearing loose khaki shorts that hung below his waist and a black shirt that went over his shorts with angel and devil wings on it. Over the shirt, he had on a black and white striped jacket with the sleeves cut off. On both his arms and legs were the insignia of his clan, the Unwavering Mountain. On his back were his shinobigatana or ninja-to (It's like the katana, but much shorter).

The shorter and younger of the two, went by the name Uzumaki Jun (like June). Jun wasn't the type of pretty like Sakura or Ino; she is more of the hidden beauty that Hinata is. Her hair is short at about shoulder length and definitely better kept than Shinji's. She had on a dark blue wife beater, an orange schoolgirl skirt over dark blue bell-bottoms with an orange flower pattern at the hem of the pants.

"Geez Shinji, do you have to scream so loudly?" she timidly asked.

"Well, if you'd just shut up when I told you to the first time, I wouldn't have to scream at the top of my lungs!" exclaimed an exasperated Shinji.

"Like you're doing now? A-Anyway, I-I thought you said you wanted me to talk more?"

"I did, but you've been talking the whole time we're on this stupid trip. Quit stuttering too, it's annoying me. And besides, how am I supposed to sense if anyone's coming if you're distracting me?"

"You mean like now?"

"What the…? Hmph, so it's a fight is it? Alright, I'm ready." Shinji said as he faced four whole teams of ninja assassins.

"C-Can I help?"

"You know the rules. No battles until you master the Seidokan Aikido. You just worry about protecting yourself," he said as he started to run up to the first team.

They prepared themselves by pulling out kunai, shuriken, and aikuchi. Shinji however pulled out his shinobigatana and readied himself for battle by using his clan's ability to harden the user's skin so that they would be hurt less.

He ran to the left to confuse the ninja while Jun hid atop one of the few trees. Once he knew Jun was safe he stopped running and attacked two nin with his ninja-to effectively killing them. The others then tried to ambush him with all types of Jutsus" but because of his tough skin, they didn't affect him at all. He then proceeded to go on hand-to-hand combat with the remaining nin, all the while taunting them at their inability to give him a good challenge.

"Come on, can't you do any better than that? If I die by any one of you sad suckers, the world as we know it is definitely gonna end."

While dodging an attack he saw an unintentional opening in the attack formation and used that to his advantage by doing an open palm upper cut on one nin, dislocating his shoulder and throwing him to another nin completely rendering the next attack useless.

He then used his shinobigatana to fight the only more experienced ninja. They struck each other blow by blow until the ninja was able to push Shinji off with his sword and knock him into a nearby tree.

"Well, well, I think I might actually start to break a sweat. Looks like there's hope for you jerk offs yet. '_This is way too easy. Is this one of Makoto's tests?' _he thought while getting back on his feet.

Meanwhile, Group 9 was running in Shinji's direction to investigate the anonymous scream.

"Hey guys, I think we're finally getting closer. I see two people fighting." said an out of breath Choji.

"What's got you all shaken up? What, too long of a run for ya?" asked Ino putting on a sly face.

"Shut… up. Let… me… catch… my…breath."

When Choji said that, everyone else just focused on the battle; Shikamaru instantly recognizing Shinji.

"Shinji! What are you doing outside Hidden Shadows? Where are Hideki-kun and Kimiko-chan?"

"Hey kid," Shinji said while striking a ninja assassin. "Don't worry about those two, they're fine."

Jun, deciding it was safe enough came out of her hiding spot and went towards Asuma, Choji, Ino, and Shikamaru.

"Hello. I feel as if I have seen you before; have I?" she asked pointing to Shikamaru.

"Jun, it's good to see you again. I hope you're not as troublesome as Kazumi still probably is. I'm Shikamaru; this is Asuma-sensei, Choji, and Ino."

He said as he pointed to them in the above order.

"Hi." they said to her.

"Hi. So am I right in supposing that you are our escorts?" she asked, while thoroughly looking them over.

Shikamaru had his hair in his usual ponytail. Instead of wearing his chuunin inform he wore cargo jeans, a short-sleeved black shirt with a jean jacket over it. Of course, in the pockets of his cargos were kunai and shuriken. Shikamaru opted to stay with his shin obi sandals, even if they might cause him trouble in the near future.

Ino had her hair out of its usual bun and let it hang out loosely, but not before trimming it before she left Konoha (she had to keep up appearances, obviously) and wore a loose, short purple kimono dress with slits on the sides; under the dress were Capri pants so no one would see what they shouldn't. Around her waist was a spiked belt hiding her Konoha headband (she couldn't resist). Ino opted to buy some new boots, knee length Doc Martens; inside the Martens were hidden shuriken she planned on using. In addition, she wore elbow length gloves with the fingers cut off.

Choji had lost the under pant-hat thing (sorry, I just think it's weird) and instead wore a ski cap (why, not sure). He also had on a long sleeved striped shirt under a short-sleeved black shirt. He had on skinny tube cargo pants sans chains (got it from Hot Topic), in the pouches of the cargo were necessary weapons and snacks he needed.

"So you live in Konoha, right?" she finally asked, still not really letting her guard down.

"Yeah, wait, you're the guys we're supposed to take back home? I thought there would be more people." Ino said.

"There are, that's why the Rookie 9 split up, and so did they. We'll be meeting back up, or did you just ignore the debriefing, Ino?" Asuma asked.

"Umm… well hey, I forget, you know" she said trying to not admit that she didn't really pay much attention.

Shikamaru shook his head trying to ignore how easily tedious the mission was already becoming. "Anyway, what Tsunade-sama did say was pretty vague, can you help us out by answering some questions?" he asked.

Just then, some of the assassins Shinji had knocked out were beginning to wake up. Others were already pulling out more kunai, shuriken, and aikuchi.

"Umm… can the questions wait until later?" asked a flustered Jun, obviously noticing the other assassins.

"The three nodded getting into their battle stances when the blood spattered ninja Shinji had been fighting was thrown in the direction of the other nin, knocking some on the ground momentarily.

"Now this is getting fun. Don't worry twerps, I'll take care of these bastards." he said still slightly unimpressed with their inability to give him a good challenge.

"Who are you calling-"

"Jun, you know what to do right?" Shinji asked, rudely interrupting Ino's outburst.

"She nodded and waited for Shinji to begin attacking so that she could put up one of her protective domes. She put her hands together as Shinji attacked, and as they grew apart a dark orb started to appear, until her hands were at a 180-degree angle, the orb grew in shape until it separated them from the other nin.

"Whoa! Way too cool, but what is this?" Choji asked.

"It's a protective dome designed to keep us safe. Once the ninja assassins outside are finished with, it'll let up. Very useful, in fact." answered Shikamaru.

"Quite. Wouldn't mind if I learned that while I was still in school." Asuma said.

"My domes can't be learned. Only I can make them without having to use Jutsus."

"And why's that, Jun?" Ino asked.

"Well…"

Meanwhile, Shinji was still fighting the ninjas. He had to admit he was a bit worried since he found the seal of the Exiles. On the last nin's forehead. If they were in league with the Exiles and Makoto, they'd have more trouble than that bum Hideki and Kimiko thought.

He thought he'd have to use his Shogukane power over the wind, when he again saw an attack opening and took out his shinobigatana slicing two on the neck and four on the neck. With the remaining nine, went into a sort of sword combat with them and was able to use the kunai, shuriken, and aikuchi they had against them by stabbing them with their own weapons. He decided to leave only one alive until his questions about who they were allied with were answered.

Sensing the danger was over, the dome around Jun and Group 9 let up and disappeared letting them out.

"O-Oh look, we can come out now. Hey Shinji!" Jun said, desperately trying to avoid the oncoming questions.

"Hey, don't you guys get the feeling…"

"That she's trying to avoid questioning? Definitely. We'll have to figure this out by ourselves if they won't help." replied Asuma.

"Answer me!" screamed Shinji, angered that the ninja wasn't answering his questions.

"Umm…w-what's the… (gasp), that's, that's…"

"The mark of the Exiles, I know. And this jackass isn't answering me. So, tell me again, are you or aren't you with the Exiles?"

"I-I-I d-don't know w-who the-they a-a-are."

"Are you brain dead or something! Who the hell gave you that mark on your head!"

When the assassin was about to respond, the mark on his head started to glow, signaling to Shinji and Jun that Makoto, the leader of the Exiles was about to make his appearance and painfully control the assassin.

Just as they had predicted, the assassin started to writhe, feeling immense pain coming from his head. "What is happening to me! Please, help me!" he screamed as Makoto had almost fully gained control of him.

"Sorry, can't. We ain't telepaths, man."

"So, little Kimiko isn't here to help. I am going to enjoy painfully killing you both." he said through the assassin.

"Hmph, and here I thought you and your goons couldn't sink any lower. Guess even I can be wrong about lowlife bastards like you."

"Who, what is this?" Asuma asked, trying to something out of Shinji and Jun.

"None of your damn business. Jun, if I don't make it, you know what to do right?" he asked, getting a nod from Jun. "Good."

"So Makoto, you wanna start this party, or should I?"

"Are you that ready to fight, my dear Shinji? Why can't we just talk this out like civilized people? Oh, right, I forgot you're not civilized at all, are you?" said "Makoto" getting into a battle stance.

"Like I said, you or me, ya bastard."

Just then, the Makoto controlled assassin sped toward Shinji, did a back flip with his left leg connecting to Shinji's left shoulder. However, this was done at a speed that not even Asuma could detect.

"Shinji!" Jun yelled.

"Don't worry 'bout it kid. It's gonna take more than just some little kick to make me give up this fight.

He took out his shinobigatana, to which the Makoto drone responded, "You're not going to use your Shogukane power? Why Shinji, you offend me."

"Good, because you're not good enough for me to use it on a half-assed drone like you!" he said, his voice escalating while he charged the drone.

"Honestly, even as a drone I could defeat you very easily." said the drone while dodging Shinji's attack.

"Oh yeah, so why dontcha?" Shinji asked managing to get a roundhouse kick to the gut.

"Very well, just know that you asked for it." said the drone.

It then held out its hand earning an oh crap from Shinji, and sent him flying off into the sky. But with his Shogukane power over wind, he managed to get back on the ground safely.

"That's it? And here I thought the great Takanawa Makoto could do better. Oh well, it's my fault for thinking better of a jackass like you."


	4. The Battle Is Over

-1**Notes: Sorry for not updating as much as I should but I've been busy being…lazy. Anyway, something's wrong with the last chapter, where it's just cut off from the other half (stupid computer). So I'm finishing it now.**

**There's something you should know about the direction I want my story to go in; I'm doing it as my version of Naruto after training with Jiraiya for 3 years, so there will be changes in some parts; just bare with me here please, suggestions would be very much welcome since it would save me from actually having to think.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto and all other Naruto-type franchises.**

**Oh yeah, forgot to tell you, Naruto won't be in the upcoming chapters with Group 10 and Shinji, he'll come later on. Just thought you should know….**

_Previously………_

"_That's it? I thought the great Takanawa Makoto could do better. Oh well, it's my fault for thinking better of a jackass like you." Shinji scoffed. _

_Now……….._

"You want more do you? Very well."

Again, it held out its hand, but instead of sending Shinji flying, it put more gravity on his body; almost to the point of bone breaking. Of course, tortured screams could be heard from Shinji because of the massive amount of gravitational force being exerted on his body.

"You see, you're no match for me; even when I possess the body of another."

"Shinji!" screamed Jun. She then started muttering an incantation and performing hand signals with the now enlarged beads from her wrist.

"Well, while she's doing that, let's go help the guy out." Asuma said; confused as to what it was Jun was doing.

They lunged toward the drone, kunai out, but were stopped mid attack, when the drone just looked toward them.

"Hmmm… and who are these young ones? Don't tell me you have an entourage now Shinji."

"Leave 'em outta this!" he responded while fiercely trying to escape the drone's grasp.

It then noticed Ino and started to walk over to her, all the while taking in her profile.

"I'll have to keep my eye on you." it told her, taking her face in its spare hand.

"Don't touch me!" Ino exclaimed. She then tried to get into the drone's mind by using her Shinranshin no Jutsu (Mind Body Disturbance Technique) but was stopped when Shinji broke her chain of focus, telling her not to get into its mind/body.

"Why not?"

"Because, fatso, she ain't "mentally prepared" or some crap like that. Just trust me, she can't do that mind thing she does now."

Choji responded with angered veins all over his head and screamed, "I'm not fat, I'm pleasingly plump!"

This intervention between the seven was the perfect distraction for Jun who used the drone's shadow to keep it from doing its gravity attack. Its shadow was used to encircle it, almost like a straight jacket. Shinji was immediately freed from its hold since its hand was what served as the connection between Makoto and Shinji.

Jun had her arms out in front of her trying to hold the drone in. "Shinji, do it now!"

"Don't have t'tell me twice." He then ran up to the drone from behind, his shinobigatana out and sliced its head in half.

"Awww…. Poor drone person man…. Whoever you are." Jun said, suddenly changing personalities.

"Would you stop doing that! It's annoying!"

"Well, I like, don't have any control over that thingamajig we have."

"Uhh….is he really dead?" Ino asked.

"Looks dead to me." Choji replied.

"How onerous. Let's just get this over with already." Came the bored response from Shikamaru.

"Shinji, what….what are you doing?" Jun asked, now suddenly incredibly worried.

"Oh great, you're changing faster than ever now. Come on kid, get on my back. I'll carry you 'till you're better."

"Y-you sure?"

"Yeah, just don't put any pressure on my shoulder for the next half hour or something."

"Thank you, Shinji. This is very kind of you."

"You sayin' I'm not nice all the time?" he jokingly retorted.

"Whatever. Who is this Makoto guy anyway? And what did he want with you?" Ino asked all at once.

"We'll answer that on the way to camp or a makeshift one at least."

**Notes: Short I know, but a lot of stuff is going to be answered in the next chapter; and you just met the bad guy of the story. There's a lot more to him than I've put in here, but right now, it's just a thought process. So…..goodbye all! **


	5. Finally, Some Answers!

-1**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

"Basically, he's the guy you're supposed to fight to protect us."

"I heard him say something about a Shogukane power. You one of them, or is it the girl?"

"Unfortunately, it's me. Jun's my- I mean, she's a sister of another one of us."

"Kimiko. Where is she anyway?" Shikamaru asked.

"Training and helping this kid out. Serious problems, I swear."

"What do you mean?" Choji asked.

"Long story. I'll tell ya later, like when I know Ko-ko won't kill me for telling you. Anyway, they're goin' to some sand village to look for this kid, Gaara. I think you've met him or something."

"We did. How did you know?"

"We're intelligence. Even though I don't show I can be pretty smart." he said in a boastful manner.

"Doubt it. But why is she looking for Gaara?"

"Ummm….until I know I won't get killed for telling you, guess what, I'm not gonna spill! Anyway, let's set up camp here for the night. We've got stuff to do. Lots and lots of 'em."

"You just had to discourage me didn't you?" Shikamaru asked, now annoyed at the fact that they had even more stuff to do.

"You know it." Shinji responded as he laid Jun down on the ground. He then proceeded to take off his back pack where surprisingly, two sleeping bags were able to fit in there.

"What are ya waiting for? I said let's set up camp here for the night."

"Alright." Asuma said as he lighted a cigarette and squatted on the ground. The rest soon followed.

"Tell me, "that kid" you were talking about, what's his name; I get the feeling I know him." Asuma asked.

Shinji rubbed the little amount of stubble on his chin trying to remember the name. "Hmmm….Hmmm….oh yeah! It's Uch…Uchiha Sasuke, I think."

"Sasuke! You've found him! But how?" The others getting excited, even though they barely showed it.

"Think so. He's got like black hair and eyes right? And he's also real quiet and emotionless? Ko-ko found him. You know him?"

"He's a missing nin in our village. Is it too much to ask why your friend is helping him?"

"Yeah, pretty much."

"What do you guys think Sakura'll say when she finds out we've got news about Sasuke?" _Ooh…I can see it now….Forehead-girl doing all my chores for a week! Priceless! _Ino thought.

"Whatever. Hey, you planning' on eatin' all that by yourself or are you gonna share fatty?"

"I'm not fat, I'm husky!"

"Yeah, whatever." he said snatching one of Choji's sweets.

"Hey, give that back!" Choji said. Jumping all over Shinji trying to get his snacks back.

"I will, wait up." he said as he went over to Jun and handed her the snacks.

"You can eat them yourself, right?"

"Yeah"

"Good." he said and hit her on the head for seemingly no reason.

"Hey, why'd you do that!" Ino exclaimed.

"It's alright. I deserved it anyway."

"What! No one deserves to be hit without a reason ya jerk!" Ino pursued. She looked to Shnji and found he was looking for something, most likely firewood.

"Jun, you're taking The Arts exam aren't you?"

"Yes. That's why I deserved it. I am not allowed to use any magic, just the skills I have learned."

"That's understandable."

"How much do you know about this anyway?" Ino asked getting a suspicious look on her face.

"A little bit. I was only about 5 when Kimiko, her sisters, and Shinji came to our grazing fields in need of help. Shinji was the one who told us most of the stuff, and then Kimiko made sure we wouldn't tell anyone. Shinji came back a while later with a pile of wood in his arms.

"Help me with this will ya?" he handed Asuma some of the wood and they both set it down on the ground. They then started up a fire and everyone gathered in a circle; Jun still regaining her energy but faring quite well.

"So Shinji, what exactly is your role in Jun's Arts examination?"

"Those stupid old geezers thought I should finally do my part and "contribute" to the village. What a bunch of crap."

"You're not from a regular kekkai genkai , are you, Jun?"

"Kekkai genkai? What is that?"

"A kekkai genkai can range from a clan's bloodline ability to just traditions passed down from generation to generation."

"I suppose you could say that then. Our clan is one of the oldest in the world, yet we don't have a place we can call home like the prominent clans in your village. So we're always moving around in an ever rotating cycle around the same place, always the same place. That's why we're called the "Clan of Whirlpools"; in your society, we may be known as Uzumaki." As she said this, she fully opened her eyes and you could simply see the deep ultramarine maelstrom she had gone through; just by looking at her pained, young eyes, eyes that looked surprisingly much like Naruto's eyes.

"U-Uzumaki, isn't that Naruto's surname?" Asuma asked, confused as to why a clan would have the same surname as Naruto.

"But that would make him your cousin or something wouldn't it? But Naruto is an orphan."

"Does he have…blond hair and cat-like whiskers on his cheeks?" she asked, somewhat hopeful for some unknown reason.

"Yeah, that's Naruto alright."

"Shinji, did you hear! Aunt Natsuki's son is actually alive!"

"Yeah I know the kid's alive, Jun. I guess you could say me and Ko-ko have been spyin' on him."

"What, why?"

"Long story. You'll find out sooner or later. Let's go to sleep, it's been a long day. You four just simmer on what I've let you know; no more annoying questions, got that?" he said with a look that wouldn't accept any protests.

Asuma, Choji, Ino, and Shikamaru begrudgingly agreed and decided that Shikamaru would keep watch. Using his watch guard duty, he used that opportunity to learn more about his old acquaintances.

"You know I'm not gonna tell ya more about the mission right? Or about what we'll be doing in your village. But if you really wanna know what's up with us go ahead."

"I wasn't about to ask on your arrival to our village. Is it so wrong for an old acquaintance to pass the time with another?"

"When we're talkin' about you, yeah it is? You don't usually come to people for no reason at all, I know that much. So, whaddaya want?"

"Fine, I just wanted to know if anything has changed in the time you guys left."

"I guess you could say we have. Jun an' Kazumi, especially."

"I also wanted to know one other thing. Is your village letting visitors in or is it still closing itself off to others.?"

"Well…that depends."

"On what?"

"If you can convince me and Ko-ko to let you come in that is."

"So, you've become the leaders of the Shadows, huh. But why would it need two leaders now all of a sudden?"

"Well, that's a long story. And we aren't really Hidden Shadows anymore. Never really were; but that's a long story that'll have to wait for some other time."

"Um…Shinji…?"

"So your back to normal huh? That's good news."

"Yes, well, I was wondering about why exactly Kimiko wants to come to this village. I know that uncle Tadashi has to train Naruto, but can't he do it alone?"

"If she didn't tell when we left, she'll tell you when we meet up. As crazy as she is, she has her reasons for doing some things. Just trust her, okay. Now, you two should go to sleep. I'll keep watch, so don't worry about it Shika."

"I do trust Kimiko, but I'd still like to know why it is that we're going to this village. Is there something there that will help us fight the Traitor?"

"I can't tell you that Jun. Ko-ko made me swear not to tell until she says so."

"But-"

"No buts Jun. Go to sleep, you need your energy back; you know that. You too Shika."

Jun begrudgingly agreed to drop the subject for now and went back into her sleeping bag to lay down.

"Is it that important to her?" Shikamaru asked before going to his own sleeping bag; trusting that Shinji would be able to keep them safe.

"Yeah, it is." he responded, staring in thought at the slowly dying embers of the fire.

**Notes:**

Thank you raging hobo for letting me use the name Natsuki, I really didn't want to have to think up more names for my already filled up supply of O.C.'s

I'll be revealing more about Naruto's parentage, but that'll be little by little.

More about the Uzumaki kekkai genkai will be revealed later on too.

So yeah….I think that's about it…..Later.


	6. FOOD!

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its franchises.**

Two days later, the group is around three to five miles from their original encampment; deciding not to set up camp the day before, but today to get more mileage.

As Shinji was looking through his bag, taking out necessary supplies, he noticed that there was not any food left.

"Hey tubby! What's the big idea eatin' all our food!"

"I'm not fat, I'm big boned! And I didn't eat your food!" he yelled back at Shinji.

"Then how the hell do you explain the fact that there's no more food left!" Shinji asked while pointing an accusatory finger at Choji.

"Umm…..there's no need for f-fighting. M-maybe we just didn't ration the food r-right." Jun said, trying to calm down both Shinji and Choji.

"Bullshit! Fatty over here ate all out food!"

"Uh-oh. This isn't going to turn out very well." Asuma said, predicting Choji's reaction to being called fat more than once.

"Yeah, should we stay neutral or do something about it?" Ino asked.

"Hmm….let's wait and see what happens." Shikamaru answered while both Shinji and Choji were trying to beat each other up.

"You bum." Ino said when she figured out that Shikamaru just did not feel like breaking up the fight.

"P-please, there….there isn't any need for fighting is there?"

"Oh yeah, there is. I'm gonna teach fatty here a lesson about eating other people's food!" Shinji said as he sat on Choji, doing the camel clutch on him.

"I didn't eat your food!" Choji said as he got out of Shinji's hold by elbowing him in the ribs, as soon as he fell on his back from the impact, Choji did the Five Star Frog-Splash on Shinji.

"Could you please help me break them up?" Jun asked the others.

"Alright." Asuma and Shikamaru said rather reluctantly.

"Come on you two." Asuma said as he grabbed Shinji by the arms, and Shikamaru took Choji by the arms too, as well as trying to calm him down.

"Let go of me!" Shinji said, trying to get out of Asuma's grasp.

"Fighting amongst each other isn't going to help us any." he calmly replied.

"Trust me, it'll definitely help me." he said as he finally got out of Asuma's hold on him.

"I'm telling you, I didn't eat any of your food!" Choji yelled at Shinji trying to defend himself.

Shinji then activated a part of his Shogukane power, his empathy, to see if Choji was telling the truth. Unfortunately for him, Choji was telling the truth. Reluctantly getting out of his fighting stance, he exclaimed "Dammit, it's not him!"

"That's what I've been telling you all this time!" yelled an exasperated Choji.

"Alright! Which one of you jackasses ate-" Shinji was about to yell when he was stopped by Jun who had her hand on his wrist.

"Oi, what's the big idea?" she pointed her index finger to the left, indicating that someone else was there, hidden behind a small boulder. The others took out their kunai, ready for battle now that they weren't so distracted while Shinji slowly walked up to the boulder trying not to let the stalker know that they knew he/she was there.

He walked around the boulder on the farthest side of the stalker to find a little old hermit; no taller than four feet, with a tree branch for a cane at his side; balding with gray hair, and wearing a long yet simple robe with a cross hanging from his neck, actually daring to eat his food!

Shinji may have been mad about losing his food, but now he was definitely pissed off beyond belief. He grabbed the hermit by the neck and was strangling him, yelling "Who the hell do you think you are eating MY food!"

The others ran to him, holding his arms trying to calm him down yet again.

"Shinji, you can't resort to violence right now. You'll draw attention to us." Shikamaru tried to reason.

"I don't care!"

"Umm….Shinji, I think this hermit is our guide to Augustus. Remember, he said a hermit would take us to his encampment? Please let him go." Jun said as she took the old man from Shinji's hold.

"Still doesn't mean we can trust him" At this he took out his shinobigatana and began questioning the hermit.

"This one meant no harm; just trying to feed himself."

"Why are you referring to yourself in third person?" Ino asked.

"This one has followed the principle of no-self, and is on the verge of achieving nirvana."

"Nirvana my ass. Take us t' Augustus y' old man."

"Yes, even with your disrespect, this one will take. As you may know, there are procedures we must abide by for the Katorikku to accept us within their encampment."

"Yeah I know those rules and we won't have to follow them since we're not going in there. What, thought you could get some more free food, huh?" Shinji asked as he saw the hermit's face sag at finding out that they wouldn't be entering the Katorikku Nomad's encampment.

They traveled for three more weeks where the wood ended and the plains could clearly be seen.

"So…..what do we do now?" Asuma asked.

"We wait for Augustus to come; it's all we can do. But I wish he'd hurry it up, we have a time-schedule here."

"We do?"

"Yep." Shinji said as he took a step towards the plains area, when an arrow landed by his foot, warning him not to take another step forward. At that, Group 10 took out their kunai getting in front of Jun and the hermit, preparing for a fight.

Shinji bent down and took the arrow from the ground, examining it. Smirking, he said, "Alright, we're not looking for trouble. We're just here to pick up a friend."

The person who threw the arrow came out of his hiding place with another arrow at his bow, warning them not to get closer to him. As he got out of the few bushes, the others were able to see him better. He wore a red long sleeved shirt under a white hooded vest, and red gi pants. He also had a bag of arrows slung over his shoulder. He looked to be around the same age as Jun.

However, another man came out of his hiding place as well. This one was much more bulkier and older than the first though. His silver hair was back length and his most prominent feature was the metal rosary around his neck. He wore a blood red vest over a forest green flannel shirt, forest green samurai pants with a blood sash around his waist (A/N: I've decided to give you guys the liberty of imaging my OC's facial features since I figure it'll make them more personalized to you).

"Miguel, stop! They are friends of mine. I have invited them here." the man said in Latin.

"You invited them? Why?" Miguel asked.

"There is a mission I must accomplish aside from teaching you; they will be able to help me."

"Very well." Miguel said while lowering his bow. The man turned to face the others as Miguel stood next to him, a smile now adorning his features.

"My friend, it is food to see you again. My name is Augustus, and this is my pupil, Miguel." He said in semi-fluent Japanese now.

"Yeah, whatever. We better get a move on." Shinji replied turning toward the forest now.

Augustus ran over to Shinji, Found an empathic connection to him and asked, '_Do they know everything?' _

'_Just because I'm a blabbermouth doesn't mean I can't keep a secret, ya got that?' _he replied as Augustus audibly chuckled at the comment.

'_Very well. When should we tell them then?'_

'_After Jun passes her tests.'_

'_Who?'_

'_Kimiko's sister. She's the one with the blue hair.'_

He nodded his understanding and half turned when he noted that the others were still rooted to the spot.

"Come on ya twerps! Ya've got legs to move around, not to stand there gawkin' like ya don't know what to do!" Shinji yelled.

"Shinji don't you think you are being somewhat rude with them? They at least know something…"

"I already gave them what I could. I'll tell them more after the tests."

"Come, we must go and complete our mission." Augustus said, finally talking to someone other than Shinji and Miguel after he introduced himself. They looked at each other dumbfounded; Shikamaru and Asuma just shrugged, starting to walk toward Shinji and Augustus. The others soon followed suit as well.


	7. New Arrivals

-1**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

Three days later a frustrated Shinji was heard screaming in...well, frustration.

"Where the heck is the next town? I'm tired...and hungry!"

"Ugh...you're not the only one. I can't just live off these scraps; I need some real food!" Choji complained as well.

"I suggest you two stop complaining, it's unbecoming of men. What you should be more worried about is the exam and your pupil passing it. You know the consequences."

"Ah, I'm not worried. Jun's gonna pass just as soon as she finds that cat of hers; right Jun?"

"Um…sure!" she replied rather reluctantly.

"Wait a minute, you mean to tell us that along with this mission she's got to take a test too!" Ino asked, somewhat outraged.

"How long will this test take?" Shikamaru asked.

"Well you seem pretty interested, why all the sudden curiosity?"

"Just wondering. What's it about anyway; intelligence, skill, memory….?"

"You a teacher or something?"

"Yes…why?"

"Awesome! Come on, we need your help." Before he knew what was happening, Shikamaru was pulled toward Shinji and Augustus so that the three could have a more private conversation.

"What do you think they're talking about?"

"Not sure." Choji replied.

"Well, it's got something to do with teaching, but I want to know why I'm not there. What, have I stopped being a teacher now or something?" Asuma asked, a bit indignant.

"They probably don't know Asuma-sensei. Hey, how about I treat you to some Barbeque chicken when we get to the nearest town? Yeah, with some miso ramen and chips and..."

Just then, both Shinji and Augustus looked directly at Ino, and then went back to their conversation with Shikamaru. However, this did not go by unnoticed by Asuma.

"Uh sure. Thanks Choji."

"Thanks man. Hey slowpokes, c'mon! We're getting close to a village here!"

"Really?"

"Yup, come see for yourselves.

Sure enough, there was a village just outside of the forest. While everyone else was reveling over the fact that they'd finally get to sleep on a warm bed, Shinji was frantically looking the town over until Jun interrupted his search for….something.

"Is something the matter Shinji?"

"Yeah, this dumb place doesn't have a red light district! This sucks!"

"What's a red light district?" Miguel asked Augustus.

"Shinji, you should be ashamed of yourself. Those poor women are being used by soulless cowards and all you can think of is your own gratification?" Augustus asked, somewhat indignant of Shinji's behavior.

"Look, you may want to be a virgin your whole life, but that doesn't mean I have to be one too, you know." Shinji responded as he started to walk toward the village.

"Well, what about your wife?" At that, Shinji was completely frozen on the spot as he turned his head toward Augustus.

"You want to get me killed, don't you?"

"Well it serves you right for being unfaithful to her."

"_You're_ married?" Ino asked, shocked.

"Yeah, what about it?"

"Why would anyone want to marry you!" she asked as she pointed an accusing finger at Shinji.

"It's not who I think it is, is it?" Shikamaru asked.

"Depends on who you think it is."

"You married Kimiko?" Shikamaru asked, both eyebrows raised. At his question, he only received silence as an answer.

"Ok Jun, now I definitely have to meet your sister. She must be like, Wonder Woman or something to be able to stand him."

"That's the same thing Kazumi says." Jun said, giggling at Shinji's expense.

"Let's just get to a restaurant." Shinji said, obviously annoyed at being made fun of. As they all started to walk behind him, Shinji and Shikamaru noticed an extra shadow that hadn't been there before.

"How long have you been here?" Shinji asked the shadow. It's only response was a shrug though.

"Who are you talking to?" Ino asked, looking over Shinji's shoulder.

"Kimiko!" Jun exclaimed and hugged what to the others looked like nothing but air.

"Really, I don't see anyone." Asuma commented.

"It's her shadow. Apparently she and Shinji are the only ones in Hidden Shadows that are able to do this. Kimiko, it's good to see you, or you shadow at least."

The shadow only nodded as it shook hands with Augustus' shadow. It noticed Shikamaru and was about to hug his shadow when it stopped and suddenly, looked as if it was recoiling upon itself and a lump was beginning to form and grew into what could be considered a literal shadow clone of the original Kimiko.

"Shikamaru, it's good to finally see you again. What's up?"

"Uhh…."

"Who cares? You get him or not?"

"Yes, Gaara is with us. It was pretty hard convincing him to come with us though. We had to wait a couple of days for his sister to come because he didn't trust his brother, you know, the guy with the face paint, to run the village while he was out."

"Gaara's traveling with you? Hey! Which team are you traveling with, Kakashi-sensei or Kurenei-sensei?"

"Yes, and it's Kurenei. About her," the shadow said as it turned toward Shinji and Augustus, "that girl shows a lot of promise. I think she could be her."

"Do you have any proof?"

"I saw her manipulate it a bit, but I can't be sure until she does it in the open. I just thought you should know."

"What are you guys talking about?" Ino asked.

"It's a long story. When you get to the Clearing, Blabbermouth might tell you."

"Blabbermouth! I haven't even told them about that other kid."

"You mean Sasuke?"

"You tryin' t'break my cover Blondie?"

"Blondie! Nobody calls me Blondie and gets away with it!" Ino was about to attack Shinji when Choji and Shikamaru held her in place.

"We're in a public place , Ino. Calm down!" Choji tried to reason.

"That's right, why hasn't anyone been staring at us?" both Shikamaru and Asuma took notice of this while Ino and Shinji were in a shoving fight trying to beat each other up.

"You're in Kane lands now. Jinchuriki shadows can be common. Thankfully, these are one of the few villages still allied to us." Augustus commented.

"Well those two fighting isn't common. Come on you two, we've got to go." Asuma said as he grabbed Ino by the waist and carried her over his shoulder walking toward a random restaurant.

"Let go Asuma-sensei!"

"Speaking of going, I should leave. Jun, don't worry about your cat, you'll find her somewhere around this village, I guarantee it. Well, I'll see you guys some other time."

"Cat? What cat?" Choji asked after the shadow left the same way it came.

"My cat, everyone female in my family has one; I still have to find mine though. I can't wait!" Jun responded as she left to go nowhere in particular.

"Where is she going?"

"Probably to find that cat of hers. She'll be back in a while, but I'm not sure if she'll be with it or not."

"Why not?"

"Just because Ko-ko said she'd find it in this village doesn't mean she'll find it tonight."

"What should we do now then?"

"Let's find a place to eat first, I'm hungry." Choji said.

"You're always hungry. Let's go where that teacher of yours went."

After some trouble finding the right restaurant, Shinji and the others were able to find Asuma and Ino eating dinner while having a quiet conversation.

"...That's just my opinion. Be careful though."

"Yo, what's up?" Shinji said as he took a random seat from a nearby table.

"Nothing much, before you interrupted our conversation." Ino pointedly looked at Shinji as he began eating some of the food that was on the table.

"Miss Ino, Shinji and I would greatly appreciate it if tomorrow morning you were to take a walk with us. There are many things of which we wish to speak to you."

"Like what?" Shikamaru asked getting a suspicious look on his face.

"Just stuff in general." came the blunt reply from Shinji.

The guys all looked at Ino to see what her response would be. Asuma's brow was slightly creased as he began to think of what the two strangers could possibly want to talk about with Ino; especially Shinji, with his ruffian demeanor. Shikamaru was slightly wondering if this talk had anything to do with the questions the two men had asked him about; and if it did, what did Ino have to do with it? Choji was worried that Ino might be taken captive by the two, it was still not known what exactly they were supposed to do. What if they were allied with the Sound. But still, the same question remained, why Ino? These same thoughts ran through Ino's mind as well, each thought becoming more frantic as every second passed.

"AHH! I don't know! I'll think about it okay!" she said, obviously pretty frustrated.

"Cool, just give us an answer before tomorrow. And you know you didn't have to scream right?" An amused smirk gracing Shinji's features.

"I think we should go somewhere more private. Everyone's starting to stare."

"Whose will pay the tab?" Augustus asked.

"Not me, I'm dead broke." Of course this started a stare off between the seven until they decided they would pick straws to see who would pay, unfortunately, Shikamaru had to pay the bill.

"Thanks Shikamaru! You're so kind." Ino said, receiving a blank stare from Shikamaru.

"Let's just go." After the bill was paid, they went to find a good hotel to stay in.

Meanwhile, Jun was in the other side of the village searching for her cat. Currently, she was in the outskirts of the village in what looked to be a seedy area of the village near an extremely wooded forest. She went into a nearby empty street to see if she could find anything before going into the forest.

However, Jun was aware that she was being followed by strange and gruesome looking things that were probably supposed to resemble humans, but looked to be far from it. The ones in the front were in a crouched position, with clothes that resembled metal so closely that it was hard to determine if the clothes were really just pieces of cotton or even spandex. Their backs looked as if they had been forcefully opened; instead of having a skeletal frame it was apparent that it was replaced with a metal skeleton instead because you could see that the metal was attached to the back. Their skin was grayed as if they had carried some terrible burden their whole lives.

The people behind them looked to be controlling the former, as metal chains from their hand were connected to the mutants necks. Jun had faced them before, however, she had never done it alone. She would just stick with her same battle tactics until she found her future feline friend. Her pursuers however, had different ideas in mind.

"You are an Uzumaki, are you not?" One of them asked. His voice guttural and cadaverous.

_So they've decided to start the attack. I guess I have no choice._ She thought as she turned around to face them. "Yes, as a matter of fact, I am" was her response as she opened her eyes to reveal blue eyes as deep as the ocean itself. "I see that you want to start a fight with me. My only question is who should initiate the first physical attack."

The only answer she received were the dominant ones releasing the leashes in their hands to allow the leashed ones to attack.

"You may have battled our hunters before; but they are far more advanced now." The same voice said.

Preparing herself for an attack, Jun raised both arms to stay at her side as the hunters advanced. After they were within a couple of inches of her, Jun jumped up in the air to avoid being hit by one of their electrical attacks. When they saw that they had missed, the hunters looked to the air to see where she could be, but only saw a gust of swirling air coming towards them. The fight had officially begun for Jun.

Back to the metropolitan area of the village, everyone else was in a hotel room. Shinji, Augustus, and Miguel were in the room across from Asuma, Shikamaru, and Choji. Ino was in her own room for the time being until Jun came back.

Too many things were happening at once, especially for Choji; even though he didn't show it.

"Is something the matter?" Shikamaru asked, seeing Choji obviously stressed.

"It's just too many things happening. I don't even know if I can keep up for much longer, Shikamaru. I'm going to go outside to think."

"If you need anything, you know I'll always be here." Shikamaru said as he put his hand on Choji's shoulder.

"Yeah, I know. Thanks Shikamaru." Choji said as he left the room.

He decided to go up to the roof, since he wanted to be alone this time. In spite of this, Augustus noticed his departure and decided to have a talk with Choji. Tapping him on the shoulder, he asked "May I have a talk with you?"

"Actually, I just want to be alone right now."

"I understand, but what I have to tell you is very important."

Choji conceded and let Augustus accompany him to the roof.

"Now tell me, what is it that troubles you?"

"I thought you had something to tell me?"

"I will, but later on. So I repeat my question, what is troubling you?"

"I guess I'm just kind of stressed is all. Small things really."

"Does it have anything to do with the place you call home?"

"A little bit." Choji answered shifting a bit uncomfortably.

"Did they not accept you?" At Choji's silence, Augustus decided to continue. "Then I shall tell you the story of my childhood. Maybe then, you'll understand something, which you don't understand now.

"I was never accepted into my original village because it was said that I am the son of Raiden, the god of lightning. Also, there were always thunderstorms caused by Raiju. They said that since I was Raiden's son, I could control Raiju as well. At first, my family came from a different part of the country, and the villagers did nothing to help us feel welcome into our new home. They did whatever they could to make our lives miserable, they did not allow us to buy food from the same stores as everyone else; they would bring us whatever supplies we needed, but they were in the worst of conditions.

"One night, my mother had decided that we were to move once more. My sisters helped her pack; halfway to our destination, we were attacked by the villagers because they didn't want me to "poison" another village with my curse. They killed my entire family, even my mother. My sisters shielded me while they themselves were killed. That is when Father Raul showed up to save me. He helped me bury my family and took me to his village; the Katorikku village. They accepted me without judging me like everyone else had. That's why, even if the demon Raiju does live within or alongside me, it does not matter, because I will always have those who accept and love me for who I am.

"I believe you have found friends who accept you. As long as you have them, you have nothing to fear."

"Thank you. Did you ever know your dad?"

"No, I don't think I ever even met him." Augustus responded looking up into the night sky.

Jun was losing the fight, terribly losing. Landing on the ground once again, she decided to do a surprise attack, by summoning as much air as she could and turned around to face the hunters, but they were too quick for her, and she was sent farther back into the forest. She couldn't perform any spells until she found her cat, so all she could rely on was her control over the air.

She needed to get into a clearing and soon, all these trees would not help her much. She jumped up onto a branch and propelled air through the bottom of her feet to make her jump higher. Desperation, was what she felt at this moment; the hunters were on her heels and she had nowhere to go since she didn't know where Shinji and the others were.

She then decided to use kimigure, a part of her bloodline trait which was a lot like the Hyuuga's except that the blue of her pupils completely engulfed her eyes and in place of pupils, she had yellow pupils, like those of a cat. With this, she could not only see far distances, but also a bit into the near future. What she saw was something extremely surprising, but nevertheless, she went in the direction of that something. First, she had to distract those hunters somehow.

Her best bet would be to dematerialize and become her true self, Kaori; even if that would deplete her chi. Looking behind her, it looked like it worked because the hunters were no longer chasing her, but had instead stopped running and looking all around them to see where she had gone.

There was no time to waste now, she had to go to the cat now. Turning into Kaori wouldn't hurt either because it would probably know who she was in her present state. She had finally arrived to where the cat was, and one word went through her mind at that moment _Huge!_ For that is what the cat was, probably taller than even the Hokage monument. Its fur was a translucent color, almost white, except for on certain places like her snout. Her size and color weren't the most surprising features, it was actually the fact that she had no eyes. Kaori knew this had to be her cat, they were descendants of Bast herself, they would never receive an ordinary cat.

Almost as if sensing Kaori's presence the cat looked down to see who was there. Kaori just stood frozen to the spot, looking at the cat where it's eyes should have been.

"You can see me?"

The cat only nodded and looked to where the hunters were, running in Kaori's direction. They had found out where she was, but before she even had a chance, something held her from the neck, preventing any movement.

"Don't try to play with us." The voice said. The hunters had finally arrived and looked about ready to pounce on Kaori.

They didn't know her ace however, and that would be their downfall.


End file.
